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GAO Warns: Tough Times Ahead for State and Local Governments

Sun, 01/6/2019

Between now and 2067, state and local governments across the U.S. will experience mounting fiscal pressure as expenditures — particularly those from health care costs like Medicaid — outpace rising revenues. That is the most recent prognosis from the U.S. Government Accountability Office which has been tracking long-term state and local fiscal trends through simulations since 2007.

“Our annual outlook suggests the sector will have an increasingly tough time covering their bills over the next 50 years,” the GAO writes. “Our model shows both revenue and spending will increase; however, spending will rise faster. Revenues may be insufficient to sustain the amount of government service currently provided.”

“The sector faces a declining fiscal outlook,” according to the report, available here.